Hawks Hang On To Defeat Pfeiffer

MONTGOMERY, Ala.- Returning to Samford Stadium after a two-game road stretch, Huntingdon women's lacrosse welcomed Pfeiffer University to resume USA South play. 

After extending their lead to as much as 7-1 by the midway point in the second quarter, the Hawks survived a strong second half push from the Falcons to take a slight 15-14 victory.

How it Happened

The first quarter of play belonged solely to the Hawks, with Huntingdon starting the game on a 5-0 scoring tear. Kate Hudson led the way with two goals while Khrystal Graham, Reagan Barrett, and Payton Barrett each put in a goal of their own to grow the lead as the second quarter got underway. Hill and Hudson tacked on two more goals through the first two minutes of the second quarter to bring Huntingdon's lead to as much as 7-0 with 13 minutes remaining until halftime.

The Falcons put in two goals to momentarily cut into the Hawks lead, but Kate Hudson's goal at the 7:21 mark raised the advantage back to six, 8-2. Pfeiffer put in two more goals in the next two minutes, reducing the Hawks lead 8-4 by the 5:40 mark. Hudson continued to carry the load for Huntingdon offensively however, scoring her fourth goal of the contest at the 5:26 mark before Karlie Honeycutt scored, pushing the lead to 10-4 with four minutes left. Hudson scored yet again in the final 40 seconds to match one from Pfeiffer, bringing the Hawks halftime lead to 11-5.

As the second half got underway, the two teams continued to trade blows. Hudson's sixth goal of the game got the second half scoring underway at the 14:38 mark, but Pfeiffer answered with two of their own to bring the score to 12-7 by the 11:54 mark. Reagan Barrett slid her second goal of the contest past the keeper at the 9:38 mark, but the Falcons put in three more goals to cut Huntingdon's lead to 13-10 with four and a half minutes remaining in the quarter. Payton Hill cashed in off an assist from Reagan Barrett to close the scoring for the quarter, giving Huntingdon a 14-10 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Pfeiffer started the fourth quarter with a goal that brought the score to 14-11, but Payton Hill quickly answered at the 12:39 mark to push Huntingdon's lead to 15-11 with 12 minutes to go. The Falcons pushed late, scoring three goals in the final six minutes to bring the deficit to just one, 15-14, but the Hawks held on, taking their second conference victory of the season.

Angelina Tran played all 60 minutes in the goal for the Hawks, making six saves on the game.

Hawk Top Performers

• #4 Kate Hudson- 7 goals, 1 assist, 3 ground balls, 3 caused turnovers
• #6 Payton Hill- 4 goals, 1 assist, 3 ground balls
• #24 Reagan Barrett- 2 goals, 2 assists, 3 ground balls 

The Hawks look to keep rolling on March 22nd, traveling to face North Carolina Wesleyan University. Gametime is set for 12:00 PM CT.